SEATTLE - Edward B. Murray was inaugurated as Seattle's 53rd Mayor at Seattle City Hall today. Murray, Seattle's first openly gay mayor, was accompanied at the ceremony by his husband, Michael Shiosaki. Murray was sworn in by Gary Locke who is a former state legislator, King County Executive, Governor of Washington, U.S. Secretary of Commerce and U.S. Ambassador to China.

In his speech, given to a capacity crowd, Murray outlined what his focus will be in office, including innovation and inclusiveness.

"I see government not as a place for political posturing, but a place for pragmatism. A forum not of ideology but of innovation where we draw strength from our diversity, not play to our deepest divisions," said Murray. "Our moral test as a community and as a city government will be our willingness and our ability to address - and to overcome - that which fragments us."

The celebration was open to the public. The venue was filled to capacity. Many attendees listened to the ceremony via speakers mounted outside of city hall.

Murray, who is tasked with naming a new chief of police in Seattle, has made the city's safety a priority.

"I pledge to make Seattle's Police Department a model of urban policing for the rest of the nation," said Murray. "Crime and violence are public health issues as much as they are legal issues. In the end, public safety is not merely the domain of the Police and Fire Departments. Rather, it is a job for all of us."

Murray was sworn in on a bible written in Galic that dates from 1850 and rosary beads that his grandmother brought with her from Ireland in 1905. Mayor Murray is the third openly gay mayor of a major U.S. city, and the first U.S. mayor in a same-sex marriage.

Mayor Murray will end the day at The Inauguration Celebration at the Samuel & Althea Stroum Grand Lobby at Benaroya Hall, 200 University Street, from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. This event is a come as you are celebration for the people. The Inauguration Celebration is open to the public.